Though the\u00a0detrimental\u00a0impact of plastic on the environment is well-known,\u00a0consumption\u00a0of drinks bottled in\u00a0polyethylene terephthalate (PET) \u2014 the most commonly used\u00a0polymer\u00a0\u2014 continues to rise at alarming levels. According to experts, over 22,000 plastic bottles are discarded every second, and the numbers are only growing.\u00a0While a fraction\u00a0of them do get recycled, most end up in the ocean, where they\u00a0disintegrate\u00a0into smaller pieces and are often\u00a0mistaken for food\u00a0by innocent\u00a0fish and birds.<\/p>\n
Now, Robert Bezeau\u00a0has come up with an idea that may not solve the world\u2019s plastic\u00a0woes, but will\u00a0at least make a dent and hopefully inspire others \u2014 He plans to use the plastic soda bottles to build an entire village in the jungles of Bocas del Toro,\u00a0Panama.<\/p>\n
The Canadian\u00a0entrepreneur, who has been living in the Central\u00a0American country for many years,spearheaded\u00a0Bocas Del Toro\u2019s\u00a0inaugural\u00a0recycling project in 2012, after noticing plastic waste being\u00a0carelessly tossed on the island\u2019s beautiful beaches. During the year and a half\u00a0it was in operation, Bezeau and his volunteers\u00a0collected over a million plastic bottles!<\/p>\n
While those recycling efforts have since ended, Bezeau was\u00a0unable to ignore the\u00a0magnitude\u00a0of the waste being generated. So in 2015, he came up with the idea of using the bottles to construct homes, and Plastic Bottle Village was born. The project that is located in Isla Col\u00f3n, the northernmost\u00a0and main island in the Bocas del Toro\u00a0Archipelago,\u00a0is still in its\u00a0infancy.\u00a0 So far, only one two-story house has been built. But if Bezeau has his way, there will soon be an entire community residing in the 90 to 120 homes that he hopes will make up Plastic Bottle Village. The development will also include a vegetable and herb garden, a small boutique, and an eco-lodge.<\/p>\n
If he\u00a0can raise the funds, Bezeau also plans to build an education center complete with studentdormitories\u00a0so that others can learn how to use the plastic waste more productively. In keeping with the village\u2019s location deep inside 83-acres of\u00a0pristine\u00a0jungle, everything will be as environmentally friendly as possible.<\/p>\n
Innovative\u00a0as the idea is, incorporating the plastic bottles into\u00a0homes is surprisingly easy.\u00a0The builders begin by constructing a steel frame that mimics the\u00a0shape of the house and filling it with large PET bottles \u2014 the kind that usually contain soft drinks. Depending on the size, each home requires between 10,000 to 25,000 bottles. Once they are in place,\u00a0necessary services like electric cables are installed. The bottle-filled frame is then plastered with layers of concrete after which come the windows, roof, and septic tank.<\/p>\n